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Path of Duat
Main_Page > Vampire: The Requiem > Bloodlines > the Anubi > ShadowJAC's Version > Path of Duat Anpw’s time in the Duat was not spent in vain, sulking. He learned much before he traveled east, back into Khemet, about himself and his gifts as well as the Duat itself. Upon his return, so much time had passed, he was amazed that old Tehuti was still alive, and still in service to the Pharaoh—though a different Pharaoh, to be sure. To him he told of the things in the twelve houses of the Duat, which Tehuti faithfully copied onto a papyrus, the Book of What Is in the Duat. Anpw also had him transcribe a second book, the Book of the Dead, an instruction manual for the newly departed on how to get from Khemet to Amenti without dying a second time. After the two books were distributed to the priest caste in Mennufer (the second for interment with the dead), Anpw invited Tehuti to return to Amenti with him where he would no longer have to worry about the everyday pains of the living. Tehuti refused, saying he wasn’t yet ready to give up the living parts, but that Anpw should stay, to guide an old man when the time came. Anpw agreed. It was another five generations before Tehuti was ready to leave. Anpw had given himself to the duties of the priest caste, who started wearing jackal masks in his honor while they went about preparing a body for interment. But Anpw had grown lonely, and knew that no one left in Mennufer — likely no one left in Khemet — would fill the hole in his ba like those in Amenti. So he chose a mate, Apuat, and Embraced her. To help her through the change and to reach her full potential as his childe, Anpw — by now taught to read and write by Tehuti — wrote out the Book of Coming Forth by Day, a modified version of the Book of the Dead, for the undead. The Book of Coming Forth by Day is full of Hekau ritual magic that exploits a Jackal’s unique ability to step between the living and unliving worlds. It is the first task of a Jackal awakening to his heritage to make his own copy on a scroll of papyrus with his own blood, binding the book to him personally. To read the book at all, a Jackal must have the Linguistics merit for Egyptian hieroglyphs, though merely copying it requires only a dot in Crafts. The transcription generally takes a Jackal about a month to do, assuming said Jackal gets on with his nightly activities and obligations as well. No matter how long it takes, the entire book cannot be copied without the use of the equivalent of three points of Vitae. The spells and rituals in the book can be shared with those outside the bloodline, but they won’t work without a Jackal’s assistance, as it is only the Jackal’s duality that can bridge the two worlds. Still, there is a certain benefit in sharing knowledge. Cost: Rituals of the Path of Duat require the expenditure of Willpower and/or Vitae, as the magics involve the focusing of the caster’s ba and ka respectively. Additional willpower cannot be spent to add to the dice pool, unless otherwise specified. Also, each ritual requires a specific prayer of intent to Ausar in the language of ancient Khemet, as written in the Book of Coming Forth by Day. Furthermore, some rituals also call for specific items or materials to be used for sympathetic focus of magic. (Some materials can be reused, but most are expended in the course of the ritual.) Any attempt to invoke a Path of Duat ritual without the proper materials fails automatically. Like other ritual-based Disciplines, Path of Duat does not follow a linear progression. A character’s mastery dictates the highest level of rituals that he may learn. Rituals are bought with experience points as the character studies more of his personal Book of Coming Forth by Day. For example, a character with two dots of Path of Duat can know an unlimited number of level-one and level-two rituals (provided the experience points are paid to learn each), but he may not learn any level-three Path of Duat rituals until his base Path of Duat dots are increased to 3. Each time a character acquires a dot of Path of Duat (including at character creation), he gains a ritual of that level at no additional cost. More rituals may be acquired with experience points and time spent studying the Book of Coming Forth by Day. Dice Pool: Presence + Occult + Path of Duat Action: Extended. The number of successes required to activate a ritual is equal to the level of the ritual (so a level-three ritual requires three successes to enact). Each roll represents one turn of ritual casting. When a player rolls the exact amount of successes needed, however, he may choose to spend an additional Willpower point for one more roll. Successes on that roll add to the total, but a failure does not have bearing on the ritual’s effectiveness. Note that each point of damage suffered in a turn is a –1 penalty to the next casting roll made for the character. If the dice pool falls to 0, the ritual is interrupted, and the character must make a Resolve + Composure roll or risk going into a rage frenzy. There is no chance die to complete an interrupted ritual. If any casting roll fails, the ritual fails, regardless of how many successes have already been made. Likewise, if the character is interrupted before finishing the ritual—either by losing his dice pool or dying—or decides to cancel the casting on his own, the effect simply fails. Spent Willpower, Vitae, and/or expendable material is not recovered. Roll Results Dramatic Failure: The ritual fails spectacularly, inflicting some aspect of itself as a detrimental effect upon the caster. Because of the nature of the magic, all botched rituals will inflict at least 1 aggravated damage in addition to any other effects. Failure: No successes are accumulated toward the required roll. The character finishes the ritual, but nothing happens. However, especially superstitious targets may reflexively roll Resolve + Composure to avoid hesitating on their next action, just from not knowing what was supposed to happen. (0 successes reduces their Initiative by 3; at 3 successes, they don’t hesitate.) Subsequent attempts to perform the ritual are at a –1 penalty. Success: The number of successes rolled is accumulated toward the total required. Once that total is met, the effect takes place as described. Exceptional Success: The effect takes place as described. In most cases, extra successes are their own reward, conferring additional duration or capacity. Suggested Modifiers: +3 - Ritual is performed in a temple dedicated to Anpw +2 - Ritual is performed in a place of the dead +2 - Target of ritual has some kind of blood tie to the character +2 - Hallowe’en +1 - The character performs the ritual straight out of the Book of Coming Forth by Day –1 - Per Health point lost during the previous turn –1 to –3 - The character is rushed or distracted (cumulative) –2 - Caster is in the presence of pumpkins or gourds –2 to –4 - Ritual is performed in a metal room –3 - Ritual is performed in a place modified by the geomantic principles of the Architects of the Monolith –4 - Ritual is performed in a place warded against Duat spirits ---- Last Rites (Level-One Path of Duat Ritual) Some individuals have been so tied to the mundanities of the living world that it becomes difficult for their baiu to find the way to their afterlife. In such cases, a Jackal can sense the presence of ba still in or hanging around the body by touch. An aura of cold surrounds the deceased that only Anubi or someone attuned to the spirit world can sense. Every ba deserves a proper sendoff. It is not the place of Anubi to judge, only to protect until the scales of maat can weigh the heart. The purpose of this ritual is to open the way into the Duat for the ba of the recently departed, and arm him with sufficient information to reach Amenti unscathed. Amenti is always located to the west, where the disk of the sun disappears from the living world. The entrance to the Duat lies in sand, so unless the character’s location is east of desert, toll for the ferry must be placed on the eyes. Concession: one Willpower point and (often) two coins Mummify (Level-One Path of Duat Ritual) Although “mummies” are merely the preserved remains of an embalmed body, special mummification rituals were performed by Anpw and his acolytes for the ancient warriors of the priest caste who guarded the tombs of their masters once their kaiu had fled them. Although the masters themselves were also wrapped, they had earned rest at the end of the road in Amenti, and would not be forced to return by their servants in such a crude vessel. The Book of the Dead instructed them how to acquire a new body in Amenti, a sahu, rendering their (by then) desiccated remains obsolete. This ritual prepares a body for mummification, later to be revived with the fifth-level ritual “Awakening the Mummy”. It cannot be used in conjunction with the previous ritual, as the subject’s ba will not be compelled to return to his body unless the body is sufficiently preserved according to tradition before sending his ba along through the Duat. Not just any body will do, either. Only the recently dead whose ba is still hanging around can be conscripted into duty. Often this means murder victims and suicides, as they tend to have the most reasons not to leave right away. Once a suitable body is obtained, it must be wrapped in waxed bandages inscribed with prayers to Ausar for protection from Apep on the way to Amenti, and prayers of supplication to Amun-Ra (the hidden sun) then sealed into a sarcophagus of Vitae for at least twelve days. Concession: two points of Vitae per level of subject’s size, lots of bandages, lots of tallow Drinking the Eyes (Level-One Path of Duat Ritual) It is rightly said that the eyes are windows to the soul. Less often, it is also said that a dying man’s last moments are imprinted in his eyes as his ba leaves through them. This ritual did not appear in Anpw’s original Book of Coming Forth by Day. It was added in millennia later by a Jackal who had found himself in a kumpania of Romani in Eastern Europe who claimed Raven as a patron totem. The wise old woman who taught him had to consume a type of mushroom to connect with the spirit world, but Anubi have that connection naturally. Even if ba is long gone, by removing a corpse’s eyes and chewing them to swallow the vitreous humor, a Jackal can relive the last moments of the corpse’s life, getting a better sense of who he was as well as the circumstances of his death. The experience lasts for one turn per success. Immediately afterward, the Jackal will violently and noisily vomit the eye, giving him –2 penalties on all social rolls for the remainder of the scene. Concession: one point of Vitae and one or both eyes of the corpse (eating both eyes adds a success to the total casting roll, for a minimum of two). Eyes of the Duat (Level-One Path of Duat Ritual) This ritual allows the Jackal to peer into the Duat to see and interact with spirits there. Interaction is limited to communication, as the Jackal is still physically in the living world. However, the Jackal will see ghosts in their sahu, fully-formed as they imagine themselves (as opposed to the vague blobs they sometimes manifest as), and as articulate as they were in life. Also with this Sight, lines and knots of energy become clear and easily understood. This extra-dimensional vision does not, however, interfere with seeing the living world. As the two worlds are juxtaposed in space, they overlap in the Jackal’s eyes. Reflecting this duality, Anubi who invoke this ritual undergo a temporary change in eye color. One eye goes jet black while the other turns red. Concession: A drop of Vitae in each eye, before invocation. The resultant sting causes a temporary blindness for the rest of the turn, inflicting a –5 penalty on all sight-based Perception rolls for that turn and dropping Defense to 0 (unless the Jackal is experienced in a technique for fighting blind). Jackals with at least one dot of Auspex may eventually (after using this ritual for a week of game-time) learn to burn the blood internally (one dot of Vitae) to avoid the sting and temporary blindness. Opening the Mouth (Level-Two Path of Duat Ritual) No matter how long a man has been dead, if he resides in Amenti, he has a connection to his khat, his corpse. The Anubi have long exploited this connection to communicate with ancestors, kings, and wise men. By wetting the mouth and tongue of a corpse and reaching his will into the Duat, a Jackal can compel the ba to speak through its body. What the corpse says, however, is entirely up to him. Being pulled away from peaceful rest makes one predisposed to be cranky and uncooperative. The dead do not return to life by use of this ritual. They can only speak. Technically, they do not even hear the Jackal’s voice, but respond to his will reaching into the Duat, so the body need not even have eyes or ears. The corpse speaks for one minute per success (minimum two minutes). Concession: one Willpower point and a thimbleful of alcohol of choice. In a pinch, water will do, but the deceased will be even grumpier, putting a –1 penalty on the character’s social rolls when interacting with the corpse. Touch of Death (Level-Two Path of Duat Ritual) The Embrace has ever transformed the dead to the undead, dragging back the ba to reside in a vessel devoid of ka and tying it to the living world with Vitae. Biological processes are halted, cheating nature. With this ritual, a Jackal can lend back some control to nature by calling forth the stiffness of the grave, rendering the target immobile as all his muscles become rigid at once. During casting, the Jackal ties knots in a length of cord while reciting the prayer. The number of successes garnered on the Path of Duat roll (the number of knots in the cord) determines the number of dice by which the victim’s next Physical dice pool is penalized. This applies only for actions, and does not affect Physical resistances. This ritual was designed for use specifically against Kindred, though mummies are affected at half the penalty (rounded up); it is completely useless against the living. Some Anubi at times have been known to use this ritual on themselves, masquerading as cadavers. It is especially effective with the Mask of Tranquility power of Obfuscate, as successes garnered determine not how immobile the caster is but for how long. In such a case, the effects can be willed away by a successful Resolve roll. The roll to activate this ritual is penalized by the target’s Composure, unless the intent is self-infliction. Concession: one point of Vitae and a length of cord. The cord can be reused, but not until the knots have been undone (Dex + Crafts). Suffocation of the Tomb (Level-Two Path of Duat Ritual) The tombs in Khemet were sealed, as the journey to Duat did not need to start from the outside. Inside the tombs were passages that led to doors that went nowhere except the Duat. Being sealed, all was darkness, but the ba didn’t need to see the living world anyway. Later, when raiders inevitably cracked the seals to loot, they had to take their own light sources. As often as not, the raiders would trigger traps designed for just such occasions, and seal themselves in with the dead. Their only light source being fire, they would quickly run out of oxygen and suffocate, alone in the darkness. Needless to say, they weren’t very welcome in Amenti. If they got as far as the scales, their hearts would almost certainly be consumed by Ammut, and they would be no more. And Anpw was there to hear their confessions. Anubi know of the darkness, and can try to share it with a target by blowing, throwing, or otherwise dispersing a handful of death-touched soil at the target’s face. (This ritual is penalized by the target’s Stamina; the soil doesn’t need to hit). A successful casting renders the target blind, deaf, and dumb for a number of turns equal to the number of successes. In addition, mortal targets will not be able to breathe, either. (See rules for Holding Breath on p.49 of the World of Darkness corebook.) Concession: one Willpower point and a handful of grave dirt/sepulchral dust/Saharan sand. Curse of Khepera (Level-Two Path of Duat Ritual) The beetle god Khepera and his children were the only beings in Khemet allowed to travel between the living world and the Duat with impunity. With no small wonder, as the flesh-eating scarabs are frightening enough without upsetting them. As such, they were often called to be living guards of the tombs, for they could make short work of an isolated raider suffocating in the dark. Like roaches, they tend to shy away from light, but by no means are they weakened or even afraid of it. Anubi with this ritual can call upon Khepera to send his children as aid against the caster’s enemies. By holding a live insect in the hand and invoking Khepera in the ancient language (the only ritual not involving a prayer to Ausar), then crushing the insect in offering to allow its ba to go on to join Khepera in the Duat, the target must reflexively roll Resolve + Blood Potency to resist the sudden intrusion of a swarm of beetles inside his body and their escape through his mouth the next time he uses any of his vampiric gifts (i.e. activating Disciplines, using Disciplines already activated, or otherwise spending points of Vitae). The sudden flood of beetles inflicts two bashing damage and interrupts Discipline activation, and any Vitae spent to activate Disciplines is lost. This ritual works equally well on Kindred and ghouls, but not at all on mortals, magi, Lupines, or ghosts, since their gifts do not derive from being dead in the living world. Nor does it work on mummies, as the magic they wield is channeled from Ausar himself. Concession: one Willpower point and one live insect of moderate size Walking the Path (Level-Three Path of Duat Ritual) Since the night of Ausar’s funeral, when Anpw fled to the west to look for the entrance to the Duat, this ritual has undergone many trials and perfections until it finally found its current form in the early 16th century, when an enterprising Jackal supposed that because the world was round and revolved around the sun, all the shadow realms had to occupy the same spatial location. The Duat was all around, and needed only the right perspective to be reached. The same cannot be said of Amenti, however. Even the wisest Anubi cannot say for certain what spatial location is occupied by the end of the path through the Duat. The only certainty is that Amenti is far away, only accessible through the twelve houses of the Duat, each successively farther away. By switching Sights to view the Duat while looking through the mirrored portal, a Jackal can now step bodily into the Duat. Unfortunately, the barrier between the living world and the Duat has grown stronger since the time of Anpw. Numerous fallacious and contradicting ideas of the afterlife have warped the collective unconscious such that it becomes easier to walk between worlds in a place devoid of human habitation. Suggested Modifiers +1 to +2 - Places of Power +1 - Desert '---' - Other wilderness –1 - Small towns, villages, other built-up areas in the countryside –2 - Suburbia –3 - Metropolii Once the Jackal is within the Duat, he must perform the ritual of Eyes of the Duat to look back into the living world. (Likewise, to return to the living world, this ritual must be performed again.) The living world grows dim, however, the farther toward Amenti the Jackal travels, as the connection between the worlds fades. Penalties to rolls to return begin at –1 for the second house and increase by –1 every other house, to a max of –6 at the twelfth house of the Duat. Concession: a drop of Vitae in each eye and a circular mirror or other clear reflective surface. The mirror is not consumed. As with Eyes of the Duat, spending a point of Vitae instead of eyedropping will suffice, given that the Jackal has at least a dot of Auspex. Flight of the Ba (Level-Three Path of Duat Ritual) As anyone who has read the Book of What Is in the Duat can tell you, there are other things in the spirit world than just baiu on their way to Amenti. The twelve houses of the Duat are fully inhabited, and most things don’t play nice. Many cultures have discovered ways to ward against their intrusion into the living world, and the Anubi are no exception. However, this ritual goes a step further and actually repels them back into the Duat where they belong, theoretically straight to the Hall of Two Truths, where Ammut will be waiting to devour them. Although this ritual was designed for Things That Should Not Be, it works just as well for ghosts anchored to the living world or who otherwise couldn’t find their way onto the path in the Duat by themselves. By expending a Willpower point and throwing a handful of salt (no attack roll required), the caster can banish a denizen of the Duat from the living world. This ritual is penalized by the target’s Resistance. By far, this is not the nicest way to show baiu the path. Any spirits banished in this way will not be quick to forget such a slight, and will often seek a way to return for some old-fashioned reciprocity. Therefore, for storytelling purposes, it may be relevant to know where the spirit has been banished to. It depends on the number of successes. The Twelve Houses of the Duat 3''' - Spirit is banished to the first house of the Duat, just across the boundary. '''4+ - Roll chance die. On a 1, the spirit is hurled all the way to the Hall of Two Truths; the ultimate destination depends on their morality (see next table). On a 10, the spirit lands in the second house of the Duat. Else roll a d10 and add 2 for the corresponding house. Scales of Maat 10 to 4 - Ghosts are ushered into Amenti; other spirits are kicked back to the twelfth house of the Duat 3''' - Roll Morality. Success indicates acceptance of non-guilt. See above. Failure summons Ammut, the Eater of Souls. There is no returning. '''2 to 1 - Ammut is always hungry. Consession: one Willpower point and a handful of salt. Using a handful of earth from the Duat instead of salt will add +2 to the casting roll. Rend the Soul (Level-Three Path of Duat Ritual) As a Jackal’s power increases, so too does his influence over ba, including baiu still tied to bodies with or without a ka. Pair this with the warding properties of salt, and the Anubi have a fair advantage over pretty much anything living. This ritual is activated by gathering salt in one hand and praying to Ausar. Once this ritual is cast, a successful touch attack (with the salt hand) temporarily shoves the ba away from a target’s body, stunning the target and dealing one point of aggravated damage per success before it can return in the next turn. If the victim is further along in the initiative roster, his action that turn is forfeit. Concession: one Willpower point and a handful of salt. Calling the Neteru (Level-Three Path of Duat Ritual) By the same token, what can be banished can also be summoned into the living world. Information or conscription for specialized tasks are the most common reasons, though certainly not the only ones. Anubi don’t kid themselves, either; they know they’re not the only beings who can draw neteru out of the Duat. But because of Anpw’s presence in Amenti, most spirits when responding to the call are more likely to give a Jackal the benefit of the doubt. However, just as many neteru are eager to get out as are reluctant to leave, and it is next to impossible to know ahead of time who will respond, so a binding is in order as well, to prevent the escapee from rampaging. By placing a bowl of liquid (usually water) in the middle of a circle of his own blood, a Jackal can call upon any neteru to respond to the summons. The degree of success determines the intent of the spirit summoned. Under no obligation to cooperate with the caster, hostile spirits will demand compensation for their time. This ritual is penalized by the target’s Resistance. Concession: one Willpower point, a point of Vitae for the circle, and a bowlful of liquid (pH of the liquid is a good indicator of what kind of spirit is summoned). By filling the bowl with Vitae (two points) instead, the caster receives a +2 bonus, but what kind of spirit is completely up to the Storyteller (who may decide to flip a coin, roll a d6, draw a card, etc.). After the ritual, the liquid is consumed, but the bowl is not. Opening the Way (Level-Four Path of Duat Ritual) Tehuti was the first living being Anpw guided into the Duat, but far from the last. It is said that Anpw returned to the living world to find Apuat but once, to share with her more of his teachings and inscribe them into the Book of Coming Forth by Day. When he left for the last time, she begged to go with him, but he refused. His place now was in the Hall of Two Truths, his duty to guard the balance of maat, to ensure that each ba went where it deserved to go, that Ammut never cheated the scale. Still she insisted, but he told her her own duty was to keep the traditions among the living, to ensure that each ba had a fair chance of seeing maat at all. But one day, they would meet again in Amenti. A third time, Apuat begged to go with him. Anpw sighed and took her hand, led her into the nearest pleasure house, and accepted a jar of beer. Breaking the seal and pulling out the stopper, he took her back outside and to the river. “Drink,” he said. She obeyed him immediately, even though she knew she couldn’t hold it. While she drank, Anpw shifted sights and stared at their reflection in the surface of the Nile, then stepped out over the water. Apuat dropped the jar, which shattered on the empty shore. They were already gone. Anpw walked Apuat through the twelve houses of the Duat to the Hall of Two Truths, showing her the hungry denizens and impressing upon her the importance of her priestly work in the living world until she agreed to return. By having a subject drink the beer of Khemet (served warm) and smashing the container on the ground, they can be brought across the boundary into the Duat with a Jackal, provided the caster holds onto his subject when he steps onto the path. This ritual works with any subject from the living world, including animals and insects, as long as they drink the beer. Kindred subjects must spend a point of Vitae to hold it in long enough to step onto the path, but once they are in the Duat, the beer need not stay in the stomach. Concession: a drop of Vitae in each eye, a circular mirror (or otherwise suitable reflective surface), and a glass bottle (or clay jar) of beer. As with Eyes of Duat and Walking the Path, a dot of Auspex will allow the caster to forego the eyedropping. Molding Ushabti (Level-Four Path of Duat Ritual) In addition to the children of Khepera, some tombs utilized ushabti, guardian statues. The Anubi found it all but impossible to teach the technique of binding death spirits from the first house of the Duat into the statues, but as long as a Jackal was working with the priests, at least one shabti did its job. A successful casting of this ritual summons and binds a death spirit to a statue. The shabti remains inert and immobile until a set trigger brings it to action. Basically golems, ushabti are incapable of conscious thought, they can only follow the instructions hard-wired into their body at casting. Unfortunately, once the task set them is completed, the death spirit is no longer bound and will return to the Duat. Extra successes increase the power of the bound spirit. Concession: one point of Vitae and a statue of something suitably aggressive-looking. Calling the Akh (Level-Four Path of Duat Ritual) Summoning and banishing spirits from the Duat is easy. But Anubi with enough power can summon baiu out of Amenti. Amenti is not the Duat, however. Those who have entered past the Hall of Two Truths have earned their stay after braving the neteru and other Things That Should Not Be, spirits too inherently chaotic even to approach the scales of Maat. Pulling them out of the Duat is cake. Beyond the Hall of Two Truths, things are quieter, and no ba will even raise its head unless called specifically. Even so, once called, none would willingly leave the peace of Amenti. This is an extended contested roll versus the Resistance of the tapped ba. The first to gather 40 successes wins. (Past the initial four successes, the contest is pure mechanics, taking no extra turns to complete; no further Willpower may be spent toward rolls.) While outwardly similar to its simpler cousin Call the Neteru, this ritual utilizes the same blood circle and bowl of liquid, but since a specific ba is summoned, a direct connection must be made. Two or three significant pieces of the spirit’s life must be gathered and placed in the bowl during invocation, as well as speaking the name the ba had in life. (Knowing the True Name - the ren - as well will add +3 to the roll.) Concession: one Willpower point, one point of Vitae for the circle, a bowl of liquid (two points of Vitae instead add +2), and two or three pieces of significance to the ba in question. Warding the Tomb (Level-Four Path of Duat Ritual) Since ancient times, the people of Khemet have sought to protect the bodies of the fallen from rot and the indignities of spirits. Automatically, worms and worm-like creatures became the enemy. Later, worms became associated with snakes, then various other reptiles. Often in tombs there have been pillars with steles carved with depictions of Heru spearing serpents, wrestling crocodiles, stomping scorpions, and myriad other manifestations. Such a carving — called a cippus — acted as a ward on the threshold, calling upon the sun’s power; no corrupting spirit may pass. Originally used only for repelling spirits of questionable intent, this ritual was later found to work against Kindred as well, forcing them to garner invitation to pass the warded threshold. This side effect was immediately written into the Book of Coming Forth by Day, and since then, Anubi have been using this ritual to ward their havens against unwanted intruders. For proper warding, two cippi must be made and placed to either side of a main threshold. Lesser entrances (windows, chimneys, etc.) will be tangentially protected, but secondary entrances (side doors, back doors, etc.) must be warded with other cippi. To create a cippus, a Jackal must himself draw Heru’s heroics into a 3x3 slab of red clay infused with a point of Vitae. On the back side must be drawn the Eye of Heru. Afterward, prayers must be said for Heru’s and Ausar’s protection before it is fired and placed. Unfortunately, such protection will only last a moon at a time; beyond that, new cippi must be made. No Crafts roll need be made, since neteru don’t really care what a ward looks like if it works. Concession: a point of Vitae and a 3x3 square of red clay per cippus. Ba of Stone (Level-Four Path of Duat Ritual) Because of the chaos of the Duat, only a percentage of souls make the full journey to the Hall of Two Truths. The rest fall prey to the things existing in the Duat itself. This ritual has been in practice since the 12th Dynasty, when it was discovered that fewer and fewer souls were responding to invocations after they were supposed to have been admitted to Amenti. Several Anubi entered the Duat to investigate and ran afoul of a nest of hunger spirits. The nest was cleansed, but the Anubi took severe losses. One even had his heart torn out and eaten by one of the neteru. After returning to the living world, the remaining Anubi together developed this ritual to protect themselves and other Jackals who venture into the Duat for one reason or another. By spending a point of Vitae and calling upon Ausar for wisdom and strength, a Jackal traveling into the Duat effectively has a Durability of 5 for the duration. (Every two successes beyond the required four increases it by an additional 1.) Concession: a point of Vitae and a stone carried somewhere on the person. Heart of Carnelian (Level-Five Path of Duat Ritual) The very first thing Anpw learned when dealing with vampires was that a stake through the heart isn’t fatal. And then Set Embraced him. Once he learned what he’d become, Anpw vowed he would never turn out like his uncle. But he also knew that Set wasn’t alone, and that others might stake first and ask questions later, so he studied his newfound abilities until he could neatly sidestep that particular danger. Especially active Anubi are utterly thankful for Anpw’s dedication. This ritual allows a Jackal to temporarily remove his heart and store it away from his body so he cannot be staked. Jars of clay were originally used, but they were found to be too fragile. Modern Anubi have found recyclable plastic peanut butter jars to be the optimum choice. Unfortunately for the Jackal, this does not make the heart itself invulnerable during the day or even while he is away. Staking the heart by itself automatically sends him into torpor, no matter where he is, and destroying the heart immediately inflicts the Final Death on the Jackal. Also, for those Kindred depraved enough to engage in a bit of Amaranth, sucking the heartsblood from the heart itself is a lot easier. The rolls are the same, and there is no resistance. This ritual requires the expenditure of two Willpower points, and does 1 lethal damage to the caster, but afterward, the heart remains unliving. It can then be placed in a jar, box, or other container and kept in a safe place for one night per success. At the end of the duration, the Jackal must replace his heart or suffer 1 aggravated damage per hour until it is replaced. This ritual works just as well on other Kindred, but practical Jackals will extort a guarantee of allegiance by telling his client that the heart must go back in after a while, and only he knows how to do it. Concession: two Willpower points and a container. Awakening the Mummy (Level-Five Path of Duat Ritual) Every undead monster needs an undead servant who by nature isn’t overly chatty. Anpw himself did not have one, but he knew it was possible. He also knew what the rest of his priest caste did not: that the ka, once the body has died, is no longer in residence. However he tried to correct them, though, the belief that the ka remained behind while the ba went on to the Duat held strong. So strong, in fact, that the upkeep of ka priests and the cost of sacrifices of food and drink to sustain and appease a mummy’s ka became an economic burden large enough to play a major role in the collapse of several dynasties. Anubi early on realized the futility and just let it happen. Several incidents on record portray awakened mummies as nothing more than shambling corpses hungry for etheric energy. Though it can happen a number of ways, the accounts sound more like actual Kindred attacks — likely Followers of Set. Real mummies (as opposed to revenants cracking their coffins to feed their Hunger on anything that crosses their path) are to all outward appearances living, breathing humans. They can even eat food without vomiting, although it comes out whole at the other end, so they tend not to do that often. Also, their hearts do not beat — like Kindred, their life does not rely on blood flow. As zombi, they suffer only bashing damage from all attacks except fire, which causes aggravated damage. By focusing the will on a wrapped mummy (as per the first-level ritual), a Jackal can call the mummy’s own ba back from the Duat — even from Amenti, if it had chosen to go on. Concession: a Willpower dot. Judgment of Maat (Level-Five Path of Duat Ritual) When it comes to Egyptian mythology, most Kindred have heard of Anubis, even if they don’t believe he was an actual historical figure, much less Kindred himself. His domain, it’s said, was guarding the underworld, at the right hand of Osiris. In Greek mythology, he’s equated to the role of Charon, the Ferryman of the River Styx. Some more educated might even say he was the judge of the balance of the soul, weighing the deceased’s heart against the feather of truth. While all this is true, ascribing his duties to his entire bloodline is almost beyond Kindred reasoning. Certainly, who would think a Jackal could remove one’s heart and potentially damn them to immediate oblivion? Yes. They can. But as Anpw himself is in the Duat, it is the heart of ba he removes. In the living world, this is a bit more difficult, but no less possible. By spending a Willpower point and a point of Vitae — reciting prayers to Ausar — and making a successful touch attack, a Jackal can reach into the soul of a living (or unliving) target and remove the heart of ba. The target suffers 1 aggravated damage, then immediately makes a Morality roll. Succeeding this roll gains the target his heart back and no further injury. Failure invites the Hunger of Ammut. However, since ka is not the factor responsible for animating the undead, ka cannot be taken away. This ritual has various effects on others. Kindred - –1 Humanity; Kindred falls into torpor. Ghoul - –1 Morality; death, to awaken one moon later as a Thief (see p.124 of the World of Darkness: Antagonists sourcebook). Mummy - Inanimation; after a number of nights equal to his Humanity, mummy must succeed in a Willpower roll once a night or remain inanimate. Mortal - Final Death. Revenant - Final Death. Concession: one Willpower point and one point of Vitae. Category:World of Darkness 2004 (nWoD)